Summer Reading: Harvest Home

A few weeks ago I purchased a lovely worn copy of one of a recent current grail title: Harvest Home by Thomas Tryon. Tryon’s second novel has appeared on numerous folk horror reading lists uncovered during my dive into the genre. Despite its presence on so many lists it was surprisingly difficult to find a copy to read. After discovering that the local public library system possessed three copies, all of which were out, I decided to go online for a copy. Turns out it was the correct choice as not only did I enjoy it, but I am confident others in my circle will too.

Told as an extended flashback from the first person perspective of the novel’s protagonist, Ned Constantine, the story's structure takes us from his family’s purchase of a home in the secluded village of Cornwall Coombe in Part One entitled “Agnes Fair” through the terrifying revelation as to what exactly “Harvest Home” means in the eponymously titled Part Five. Tryon deftly places breadcrumbs such as “Viewed in the light of what occurred later, it was a fool’s Paradise” (152) and “I never got to Hartford… for it was the fateful night that saw my fall from favor” (278) to let the reader that, despite what is to occur, Ned has survived. Of course, surviving does not necessarily mean unchanged.

The aspect of the story that works best for me is Ned’s building paranoia regarding the shifting allegiance of his wife, Beth. Their relationship is further complicated when it becomes clear that she, and his daughter, are being slowly manipulated by the town’s leader, the elderly (and initially very kind and supportive of Ned), Widow Fortune. As the Widow insinuates herself into the Constantine family’s lives, Ned (and we) recognize that all is not what it appears. Equally frustrating is the pig-headedness of Ned’s decision making that ultimately result in the grim finale which begins when he feels a “shiver, like a strange paralysis, creeping up [his] body.” (386) In the end, Ned’s paranoia about having his loved ones turned against him by larger (small town) social pressures is well executed by the author.

This is, of course, a folk horror novel, and Tryon does a very credible job building this world of corn cob totems (160) and Eleusian Mysteries. The author uses a neighbor character, Robert Dodd, a former college professor who is now blind and housebound, as the primary vehicle for delivering the eerie exposition regarding the community’s rituals and pagan belief. Goddesses, fertility, psychedelic mushrooms and “corn stalk cosplay” all play a role in fully developing the system of beliefs that drive the community forward into the future by staying set firmly in its past.

When released in 1973, Harvest Home was the successful follow-up to Tryon’s debut novel The Other (1971). Quickly adapted into a popular television min-series starring Bette Davis, it demonstrated itself to have some cultural resonance too. Harvest Home, like most successful that maintains its appeal, subverts a number of horror conventions a trick made slightly more difficult to in a contemporary context due to its impact on books and movies that followed. Though some of the narrative twists and turns were expected, if you have seen The Wicker Man (1973) or Midsommar (2018) you’ll see them coming too, the sense of dread Tyron builds was surprisingly not ameliorated. The fact that my own prior reading provided clues to later reveals, speaks to the gripping nature of Tryon’s storytelling.

Everyone has experienced the disappointment and regret that comes with looking very forward to getting something that fails to live up to expectations (come to think of it that could be a theme for this book!). I am happy to share that this is not the case with Thomas Tryon’s Harvest Home, a 400 page book I breezed through in three days despite frequent stops to jot down notes and savor the storytelling. Highly recommended!